Sabre52
Cave Dweller 
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,504
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Post by Sabre52 on Jul 3, 2010 11:30:11 GMT -5
Howdy folks, Worked on one of my least favorite tumbling chores today. Was running short of some of my tumbling roughs so I spent the morning out in the 100% humidity by my favorite limestone boulder, which I use as an anvil, crunching up some rough. So dang humid that the water kept obscuring my vision and fogging up my glasses as I worked. I got her done though, one big batch of tiger eye and another almost as big of Indian green tree agate. Here are a couple of pics of the crunched up rough.....Mel Tiger eye, mostly golden and variegated with a little hawk's eye thrown in.  The green tree. This stuff is tough to tumble well because of calcite spots but the kids love the color.  |
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Post by Donnie's Rocky Treasures on Jul 3, 2010 12:37:14 GMT -5
That'a a bunch of good looking rock!
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Post by tkrueger3 on Jul 3, 2010 14:46:24 GMT -5
Oooo - I enjoy working tigereye so much that it gives me pain to see such a pile of it all smashed up! Should make a gorgeous tumbled batch, though!
Tom
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carloscinco
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2008
Posts: 1,639
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Post by carloscinco on Jul 3, 2010 16:29:16 GMT -5
Those are some good looking pieces. I like that tiger eye. I also cringed a little when you mentioned the anvil for that sweet stuff.
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Post by NatureNut on Jul 3, 2010 16:49:14 GMT -5
Oh the fractures! LOL. Can't wait to see the progress of this sweet batch! Jo
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,504
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Post by Sabre52 on Jul 3, 2010 17:39:50 GMT -5
Yeah. I usually find tiger eye a bit expensive for the tumbler but I had some lower grade stuff I found at a yard sale and made a good buy on E-Bay one time so this was actually quite inexpensive. When I take the ranch kids out for nature hikes and let them pick through my tumbles, tiger eye is always the first thing I run out of. I did set aside the best pieces for future slabbing but I have to admit that I really don't like cabbing tiger eye much. Dang fibers sometime get pulled out by the diamond which spoils the fun.....Mel
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NorthShore-Rocks
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since December 2008
Posts: 1,004
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Post by NorthShore-Rocks on Jul 3, 2010 18:21:06 GMT -5
Your stash of stuff is just unfair! Love it and keep it coming!
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Post by Toad on Jul 3, 2010 22:44:42 GMT -5
I found some low grade tiger eye, but can't tell you where until I get my computer back after our final move next week. Funny, also got some green tree agate from the same place.
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Jasper-hound
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since June 2010
Posts: 208
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Post by Jasper-hound on Jul 4, 2010 9:28:40 GMT -5
RE the tiger eye, anyone know how to keep fibers from pulling out when tumbling, as this has happened to me!
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,504
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Post by Sabre52 on Jul 4, 2010 11:35:02 GMT -5
Rockbasset: I think that depends to some extent on the quality of the tiger eye. Generally, I have much better luck with this material in the tumbler than I do on the diamond wheels. The diamond sanding wheels really tend to pull fibers. Well silicified tiger eye seems to tumble up pretty well as long as I run it in coarse long enough for well rounded and smoothed shapes. Any angles or edges on the stone seem to act as a weak link in terms of fiber pulling loose......Mel
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Post by Toad on Jul 4, 2010 12:00:19 GMT -5
I never had trouble tumbling tigereye, but I do as Mel said and tumble in coarse until very smooth.
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Post by rocklicker on Jul 4, 2010 17:45:25 GMT -5
Cool looking rocks Mel. By the looks of those, you will have some sweet tumbled rocks when you are done. I imagine breaking up rocks in that kind of humidity is a great workout. Mind if I come over and break up some rocks for ya so I can shed some pounds? ;D
I got this nice chunk of tiger eye hanging around and I can't decide if I want to slab it or break it up for tumbling. Hmm. I really want to do something with it, but haven't decided what.
Steve
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,504
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Post by Sabre52 on Jul 4, 2010 20:11:55 GMT -5
*L* Steve, One of the hunks I smacked up I'd been tripping over for about ten years. Too big for the ten inch saw I have now so I finally broke it up so I could use it. Eventually, you just have to get some of the big ones out of the way before you wind up dropping them on your toe.....Mel
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Post by Condor on Jul 4, 2010 20:31:48 GMT -5
OMG Mel. You just brought back a very funny RTH flashback! Any of you remember that guy that used to go nuts any time someone would break rocks? Especially with a hammer? It would crack me up because he would just have a fit and let you know.
Condor
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,504
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Post by Sabre52 on Jul 4, 2010 20:52:20 GMT -5
*L* I do seem to remember having read that somewhere. Guess it all depends on what you use your rocks for and how many you have to play with. I tumble lots of slabs too but the saw time is a killer. Sometimes it's just easier to take a hammer to them and if you're careful there's actually very little waste...Mel
PS: A little addition to the rock smacking story. The area I work has no weeds, just limestone and leaf litter beneath an oak. So, I just spread out some feed sacks to keep my hind end dry and went to it. Well not being a native born Texican, I thought those damn chiggers were in the tall weeds. Well it turns out that damn limestone and leaf litter must have been the local chigger ghetto cause I got so dang many bites and some of the dangdest most uncomfortable places ( ladies, I will not go into detail here) that I am in absolute misery today. Man those little bastiches make some itchy bites!
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Post by parfive on Jul 4, 2010 21:18:18 GMT -5
Ah . . . the crazy Alaskan. ;D Noooooo . . . not you, Doc.  Spacegold, I think. He particularly had it in for Rollingstone, one of the premier tumblers ever on the board. |
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carloscinco
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2008
Posts: 1,639
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Post by carloscinco on Jul 4, 2010 21:21:30 GMT -5
Google "how to get rid of chiggers on your body". We always took an epsom salt bath when we picked them up at the hunting lease. It beat sulfur powder and diesel.
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snuffy
Cave Dweller
Member since May 2009
Posts: 4,319
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Post by snuffy on Jul 4, 2010 21:30:27 GMT -5
I think steel wool soaked in alcohol,and hard scrubbing would get 'em off,but I wouldnt recommend it. :nono:
snuffy
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Post by Condor on Jul 4, 2010 22:16:24 GMT -5
At Ft. Riley, Kansas, in one night I had a total of 72 chigger bites. I used clear nail polish on each bite and it worked like a charm. From what I understand, it suffocates them.
Condor
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Post by Toad on Jul 5, 2010 7:46:59 GMT -5
LOL, I think I got yelled at more than once for breaking rocks with a hammer. But if you don't have a saw, what else do you do??
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